November 10, 2013

Symposium 2013 Roundup Week One

By Clarke Morledge
Facts and Faith Symposium attendees prepare to view the first film, Lee Strobel's The Case for a Creator, followed by a panel discussion and Q&A.

Facts and Faith Symposium attendees prepare to view the first film, Lee Strobel’s The Case for a Creator, followed by a panel discussion and Q&A.

We have just concluded our first week of the Facts and Faith Symposium. You will not want to miss the next two weeks!  But if you are unable to attend, we will be covering the conversation here for you.

Handout

Facts & Faith Handout

Here on Veracity, we have talked a lot about science and faith issues as they relate to Creation as we have been ramping up over the past few weeks in preparation for the Symposium.  CAVEAT: For those of you who feel overloaded by science/faith stuff, do not worry.  We do blog about other things, too!   John and I have just been on a roll lately!

Below is a selection of many of the Veracity blog posts that address various issues regarding Creation.  In addition, we will have extra material that seeks to address a number of questions that come up during our conversation.  If you have further questions, or things you want to talk about, please put them down in the comments section below. Thanks!

Having a conversation about Creation and the Bible:

Science and the Question of the Existence of God:

Different Christian Views about Creation:

Intelligent Design:

Thinking about Creation and the Bigger Picture:

Have a Comment or Question?

Our panelists will address comments and questions we couldn’t get to due to time constraints. Please post your questions in the “What do you think?” box below, and check back soon for the answers.

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November 6, 2013

Evidence of Transformation

By John Paine

“It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.”
 (1 Corinthians 15:44, NIV84)

Dinosaur at Toronto Airport

How come there are no dinosaurs in the Bible? I found this one at the Toronto airport.

After all of Clarke’s hard work leading up to our Facts & Faith symposium, I decided to see if I could help out by taking Veracity on the road—to look for evidence of agreement between science and faith. So…

Niagara Falls

Greetings from Niagara, Ontario! It’s very wet (and beautiful) here.

Old earth creationism, young earth creationism, theistic evolution, neo-Darwinism, naturalism, theism, atheism, science versus faith, science and faith—we’ve taken on quite a bit of material in the weeks leading up to the symposium. There seems to be no end to controversies surrounding these topics. Got it. But does any of this stuff really matter?

Bird at Niagara Falls

What are you thinking?

It is ironic that the three intramural Christian positions on creationism (young earth, old earth, and theistic evolution) all agree that the age of the earth is not essential to the salvation of anyone’s soul. So why does it matter? OK, let’s come at the issue from a less Christian perspective.

Suppose you are sharing your faith with someone who is unfamiliar with Christianity, or has doubts about the claims and content of the Bible. (If you’re not encountering people like this, might it be time to leave your monastery or otherwise get out and meet some real people?) Further suppose that your beliefs are not supported by contemporary science or scientific scholarship. Would you be willing to argue that “science is wrong?” It turns out that many Christians do indeed argue that science teaches things that are contrary to the Bible and that science is wrong. Welcome to the Bible versus science, an unnecessary either-or proposition. Continue reading

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November 5, 2013

Animal Death and Suffering Before the Fall?

By Clarke Morledge
From the Royal Society, a graphic showing how a 2008 fossil discovery demonstrates the link between the modern turtle and its ancient ancestors. Is there a sufficient theological reason to reject mainstream science, or Biblical reason to accept it?

From the Royal Society, a graphic showing how a 2008 fossil discovery demonstrates the link between the modern turtle and its ancient ancestors. Is there a sufficient theological reason to reject mainstream science, or Biblical reason to accept it?

When Abraham Lincoln was a small boy, he would sometimes join his friends in doing cruel things to animals. But he was uneasy about it and eventually Lincoln’s conscience kicked in. Once when schoolmates began to torture a turtle, Lincoln intervened and scolded his friends for committing a horrible act of wrong.

Human sympathy for suffering animals runs deep. I am one of those people who slow down on the highway… or even stop… when I see a helpless and confused turtle trying to cross the road. Now just consider this idea for a moment: according to mainstream science, most of the animals that have ever lived belong to species that have long ago become extinct. A lot of turtles have been “run over” by the relentless progress of evolution.
Continue reading

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October 31, 2013

From The Dust

By Clarke Morledge

What is the role of scientific discovery in Christian faith?  Many today feel that the practice of modern science is not very friendly to belief in the Bible. Is there a way that Bible-believing Christians can make peace with the work of the modern scientist?

From The Dust is a recent documentary film that aims to reframe the discussion regarding the Bible and Science by looking at how we read the Scriptures and how we think about the art and beauty of science.   When we read Genesis 2:7, we get a grand view of the glory of God as He creates Humanity in His Image:

Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature (ESV).

How does Science complement and illuminate the Biblical picture of creation?   Watch the film trailer for an idea:

With interviews by leading and influential Biblical scholars, scientists and theologians from diverse perspectives, such as N.T. Wright, Alister McGrath, John Polkinghorne, John Walton, Jason Lisle, Terry Mortenson, and Pete Enns, From The Dust hopes to reinvigorate the Christian imagination on how we approach these issues.

If you are cheap like me, you can simply review some of the film clips at the movie’s website or view them at the BioLogos website to get an idea of what it is like.  If you really like it, you can order the film through BioLogos, or download on iTunes.

Stretch your mind and enjoy!

Coming Next Weekend!!  Veracity Takes It Out of CyberSpace and Into Live and Personal Discussion!!

Facts & FaithWant to explore more about these issues in conversation with others? Then please join us at the  Facts & Faith Symposium, at the Williamsburg Community Chapel, several Sundays in November, 2013 (the 10th, 17th and 24th) at 6:30 pm.

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October 26, 2013

Killing Jesus: I Guess It All Evens Out?

By Clarke Morledge
First, there was Reza Aslan's Jesus the Zealot. Now, there is Bill O'Reilly's Killing Jesus. Both books have their merits, but I would suggest sticking with books written by less politicized New Testament biblical scholars....and if you do not have time for that, just stick with the Bible.

First, there was Reza Aslan’s Jesus the Zealot. Now, there is Bill O’Reilly’s Killing Jesus. Both books have their merits, but I would suggest sticking with books written by less politicized New Testament biblical scholars….and if you do not have time for that… just stick with the Bible, please.

Several months ago, I reported on Veracity about Reza Aslan’s controversial yet popular book, Jesus the Zealot. Several waves of biblical scholars mostly panned the book, citing that despite a few thoughtful ideas here and there and some very engaging storytelling, Aslan fails to contribute anything substantially new to the discussion regarding our understanding of the historical Jesus. Now, just a few months later, conservative news commentator Bill O’Reilly has made his stab at writing a biography of Jesus of Nazareth, Killing Jesus.

Over at Anthony Le Donne’s scholarly Jesus Blog, we find an initial take on O’Reilly’s (with co-author Martin Dugard) latest blockbuster, following on the heels of other popular subjects, such as Killing Kennedy and Killing Lincoln. Sadly, Le Donne is not impressed so far. At best, Le Donne finds O’Reilly’s use of biblical and historical sources to be inconsistent. But here, Le Donne quotes one of O’Reilly’s leading statements at the beginning of the book:

“Jesus was executed. But the incredible story behind the lethal struggle between good and evil has not been fully told. Until now. At least, that is the goal of this book.” (page 4)

Wow. Such hubris. Despite the thousands and thousands of pages already printed investigating the historical identity of Jesus of Nazareth, O’Reilly is telling us that only now will he begin to tell us the full story.

That is simply incredible.

Just think about this for a moment. Here are two books by Aslan and O’Reilly that have rocketed to the top of the New York Times best seller lists. The folks at the apologetics website Stand to Reason appear to be some of the few Christians who generously find O’Reilly to be somewhat helpful, but even they stop short of a full endorsement. Furthermore, even Ken Ham at Answers in Genesis finds something to disapprove of regarding Killing Jesus. In some cases, O’Reilly takes the New Testament accounts at face value for being historical. At other times, he dismisses key aspects of the Gospels as historically valid. In the reviews I have seen, it does not seem at all clear what O’Reilly’s method is for making his historical judgments.

I wonder why you do not see books by top-notch evangelical New Testament scholars like N.T. Wright, Craig Blomberg, Ben Witherington, Craig Evans, Gregory Boyd, Mike Licona, Gary Habermas, D. A. Carson, Gregory Beale or Darrell Bock at the top of the New York Times Best Seller lists? On the positive side, both Aslan and O’Reilly show that people are still fascinated with the person of Jesus Christ, which provides a very natural opportunity for the believer to start up spiritual conversations with their neighbor.  However, it is difficult to restrain myself from thinking that politics might be part of the reason for Aslan’s and O’Reilly’s success with their books.  I do not mean to step on anyone’s toes, but it would concern me if the story of Jesus is getting manipulated here to support some different agendas.  I suppose that if Reza Aslan writes something that appeals to so-called “liberals” that O’Reilly feels compelled to write something appealing to so-called “conservatives”. I guess it all evens out perhaps?

Just a Few Weeks Away!!

Facts & FaithCome join the Veracity community at the Facts & Faith Symposium, to be held at the Williamsburg Community Chapel, on several Sundays in November, 2013 (the 10th, 17th and 24th) at 6:30pm.

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